ENERGY
Have the lights gone out in Gloucestershire’s powerhouse?
Once seen as being at the forefront of an energy revolution, has the plug now been well and truly pulled on Gloucestershire’s electricity boom? At the start of 2018, the county could call upon companies pedalling power from the power of wind, tide and uranium – but now there have been significant hits to two of those energy sources. Plans by Gloucester-based company Tidal Lagoon Power to build – yes – a tidal lagoon in Swansea were approaching a green light. Gloucester neighbours Horizon’s plans for the Wylfa Newydd nuclear power station in Anglesey and Barnwood-based EDF’s Hinkley Point scheme in Somerset were also good to go. And once you add in Stroud-based Ecotricity and its plans to make wind power the go-to renewable and green energy source, it seemed Gloucestershire had the power. However, fast-forward back to the present and the lights are slowly but surely being turned off.
June 2018 saw the first switch flicked to off. After carrying out what they called “extensive analysis”, the government decided to pull any funding towards a tidal lagoon. Pulling the plug on the £1.3billion deal, business secretary Greg Clark told the House of Commons that the proposal was simply not offering value for money. He said: “The inescapable conclusion is that, however novel and appealing the proposal is, the costs that would be incurred by consumers and taxpayers would be so much higher than alternative sources of low carbon power that it would be irresponsible to enter into a contract with the provider.” That was not good news for docks-based Tidal Lagoon Power, which was forced to enter a Company Voluntary Agreement and lay off staff. From a business getting ready to roll with more than 100 on the payroll, they are now scaled back and working with around a dozen and waiting for more news to emanate from SouthWales.
Punchline’s next issue, gloucestershire's 100 biggest employers will be published in APRIL
54 | February 2019 | www. punchline-gloucester .com
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